UPDATE: The Accessible Dog Park Coming to Bellevue South Park in Kipps Bay is NOT HAPPENING

The funding for the Dog Park in Bellevue South was allocated. Sadly, the money was moved and used for another purpose. You can email Rosie Mendez, our current council woman (until the upcoming election) for more information. It is sad the Dog Park has been cancelled / postponed / rescheduled? The project news changes over time. Unfortunately, Owen's mom doesn't have the time or energy at this point to keep up with the cancellation? Delay? The Community did a great job of supporting the project planning. PS 116 kids voted on a name for the Dog Park.Meetings were held with the Parks Department and community stakeholders. The residents of the buildings surrounding the Dog Park gave their support. The money was allocated and placed in the NYC budget, specifically for our accessible Dog Park.A sign was made and hung up announcing the new Dog Park that would be accessible for all of our neighbors - those with disabilities and those without disabilities. However, something happened and the money was used for another purpose. There was a meeting in the Spring of 2017. Some representatives said it would happen, but it would take 3 - 7 years to begin the project. It is unclear to Owen's mom what the solid plan is for the accessible Dog Park in Bellevue South.A Note from Owen's mom, Rebecca:I'm very disappointed our accessible dog park did not happen as planned. Our neighborhood is a vibrant community with a diverse group of folks.Owen & his mom will try to update this blog in the future (from July 2017 forward) but, it is confusing and has been difficult to get concrete information on what is happening with the dog park, so you may want to find another source of information (i.e. the new City Council Member) so you know what's going on, how you can help, dates of new meetings and the best guess the dog park will begin to be planned (AGAIN). YOUR HELP IS STILL NEEDED IF THIS DOG PARK IS EVER TO HAPPEN!! Call the new Council member, the Mayor, anyone you can think of - we still deserve a neighborhood dog park !The prior planned spot for the Dog Park, in Bellevue South Park is:ONE BLOCK AWAY from NYU Hospital & Bellevue Hospital. Patients and visitors to the hospitals have service dogs. FOUR BLOCKS AWAY from the Veteran's Administration. (Lots more returning Vets have service dogs!)Several residences for older neighbors or those with disabilities are a few blocks away from the planned spot. Many of these folks have service dogs.Clearly, in addition to our neighbors, visitors to these places would benefit tremendously from NYC finally having an accessible dog park! Owen and I meet lots of older neighbors who have told us they would love to have a dog as a pet, but they don't because there is no dog park in our neighborhood and the dog parks a long walk or cab/bus ride away aren't accessible to them. Older neighbors should be able to have a companion pet and a safe place to bring them to play just like other NYC neighborhoods. It makes me very sad to tell my neighbors the Dog park is cancelled or on hold.Please keep in mind, this Dog Park was for OUR COMMUNITY. You and your dog are going without a neighborhood dog park just like Owen and me. It is a very sad occurrence. IF YOU HAVE ANY UPDATES, PLEASE LET ME KNOW, AND I WILL BE THRILLED TO ADD THE NEW INFORMATION TO THIS WEBSITE. Thanks very much for all your support, signatures and good wishes.Rebecca & Owen (the Super Service Dog!)

A group of Dog Park team members meet on Thursday, July 16, 2015 in Bellevue Park South. We talked about:Where will the permanent Dog Park be?

At this point, we believe the finished DogPark will be in a LARGE Section near the middle of the park. (Rebecca's note: I am such a bad artist, so I'll post a photo of the Dog Park's permanent home)

We talked about the possibility of using a smaller area of Bellevue South Park for now. We need to:

Work out fencing with Parks Department

See if we can use a smaller area nearby for smaller dogs

We need to get a finalized plan with budget and timelines.

We are probably going to have to get some grants to match funds in order to make the Dog Park happen. If you would like to help with grants or have an idea for donors, please email or make a comment under this blog.

Planning for ongoing maintenance and upkeep from community members. We need to show the Parks Dept that there is a need for an ACCESSIBLE DOG PARK and a Dog Park in KIPPS BAY. (The more signatures, the more we can show them we will help keep our Dog Park clean & cared for in the future)

Representatives from various Stake Holders to share their expertise and ideas. This will be an ACCESSIBLE DOG PARK for EVERYONE!!! Some people with disabilities have working Service Dogs. Some people with disabilities have regular pets. Both working dogs and pets need to play and make friends in a safe place.

So we need to make sure we have people who:

Have little dogs & big dogs as pets

﻿﻿Service Dog Team Members who ﻿use wheelchairs, walkers, scooters, canes﻿ for mobility to help us make sure this park is going to be accessible and super for you and your Service Dog to come play & make friends? Are there special things that Service Dogs vs. Pets require? ﻿﻿

Guide Dog Teams - as a Blind or Low Vision person, what can we do to make this park accessible and a super place for you and your Guide Dog to come play?

Veterans with pets or Service Dogs - What are your priorities?

Hard of Hearing & Deaf people - What would you like to see for your dog? How can we make this park accessible and a super place for you and your dog?

Parents - Do you have furry kids & human ones? Is there something we can to do make this Dog Park work best for you and your furry kids & young humans?

Soon, there will be a website set up for the Dog Park. Until then, we will keep you up to date on this page. You can also follow

This is Owen. He looks like a regular dog...... but, he is not. He is a Super Service Dog!!!!

Service Dogs do a LOT of work!! Service Dogs LOVE their human team member.

This is a picture of Owen, Rebecca's Service Dog. Rebecca has Multiple Sclerosis (MS), so sometimes she uses a cane, or a wheelchair. In this photo, Owen is giving money to the Deli Cashier and taking Rebecca's change. Why does Owen need to do this?? Because this counter is sooooooo TALLLLL! Sitting in a wheelchair, you can't reach the counter.

Owen is giving the clerk money and taking back the dollar bills in one jump! Super Service Dog!!!!

You can read a lot more about Service Dogs and what Owen does if you click here. If you have questions, you can email Owen. He loves to get email. But sometimes it takes a week or so for his to write back. He doesn't have thumbs! And Siri doesn't understand BARK Language. Yet. Feel free to email Owen any questions about him or being a Service Dog in NYC!

Here is Owen with his Service Dog Backpack on, standing on his back 2 paws with his front paws on a very high counter in a deli. Why is Owen standing up? This counter is sooooo high, if his mom uses a wheelchair, she can't reach to give money or get change back. Owen is giving the clerk money and taking back the dollar bills in one jump! Super Service Dog!!!!

Check out the box above to see how many signatures we have so far.Thank you for signing & sharing the petition page with your friends & family!Everyone can sign our petition. Even if your friends don't have a dog , they love yours, right? They'll go to the new Dog Park with your baby to sit & relax, right? Then ask them to sign our petition!

If your friends don't live in Kipps Bay, they'd still love to take your furry baby for a play date in the new Dog Park (10016 ~ zip), right? Then ask them to sign our petition!

Owen's Social Media!

Owen's FB, Twitter and Instagram accounts are still very active!!!!We would love for you to like our FB page, follow us on Twitter or Instagram too for more photos and find out what Owen is doing today! We love to have followers! Facebook Page: facebook.com/owentales or click on the FB icon below. Twitter: @owentalesInstagram: owentales